Remus and Tonks
by Show-The-Love
Summary: One-Shot of Remus and Tonks


"REMUS! I lo-"

"NO! You can't"

The argument had come up again. That one argument that the pair had had over, and over, and over again. They've had it so many times, and Remus still won't give in, but Tonks isn't giving up either. "Why? Why can't I love you? Give me a good reason!"

Remus sighed. This question has been asked every time they had this conversation, and Remus knew his answer in a split second. "I'm…different. You deserve better. You deserve someone who is younger, someone who can give you a better future." "What if I don't care that you're different? Who cares if you're older than me? You're not that much older anyway," Tonks objected, trying to change his mind. She was so frustrated at Remus. She knew that Remus loved her too, but he was too scared of the consequences to admit it.

"But, I might hurt you. I can't trust myself around you," Remus said. He said it so quietly, that if Tonks hadn't been looking directly at him, she wouldn't have known he'd said anything at all. Tonks looked directly into his brown eyes, those eyes that made her heart do backflips, those eyes that looked like they were looking into her soul.

"Why can't you understand? I don't care about you're little problem! I'm not scared of a future we could have together! I don't want someone younger, or someone who could buy me nice things! I don't need nice things, or someone younger, or someone who doesn't turn into a monster every month! I need you. Just you." Tonks breathed heavily from her outburst of emotion.

Remus stared at her. Stared at this amazing women, who could turn his world upside down just by saying 'hello,' who could make him forget all the problems of the world and make him relax, who could make him feel like the world had stopped spinning and that time had stopped, so that they could just look at each other forever, the girl who he loved.

"I love you Remus, get that through you're thick skull! I LOVE FREAKIN' YOU!" Tonks had stepped toward him with every word she said, and now the two unlikely loves where standing so close that their noses were close to touching, but they didn't notice. Tonks was listening to Remus' breathing, and Remus was listening to his heart thumping loudly in his chest, something that happened whenever Tonks was close to him.

"I-I-I...I lo-"

But Remus stopped himself. He was so worried about what would happen to Tonks if they did this. If they got together. People would shun her, people would discriminate, bully, and every other nasty thing anyone could ever do. He couldn't do that to her. Remus couldn't make Tonks a social outcast just for him, even if she said she didn't care. She didn't know what it was like to have people not talk to you, to have friends turn their backs on you. It's painful, and Remus couldn't put her through that kind of betrayal and pain. Remus looked into her eyes. They asked him to finish saying that one sentence that would change everything. He couldn't look away from them, but they made him feel so guilty for not being able to put her through the betrayal that this would bring.

"Yes?" Tonks asked, nodding her head and begging Remus to continue. Remus sighed. "I can't. People would shun you! Friends will betray you! Why don't you understand that? I'm not worth it," Remus said. He whispered the last sentence, knowing that it was true. That this monster was not good enough for Tonks, who was an amazing human being. He wasn't worth her to give up her life for him.

"You're kidding, right? You ARE worth it! I don't care about other people! They don't matter! All the people who I care about accepted you, so I still don't see a problem," Tonks said, getting madder with each thing Remus said. How could he think that he wasn't worth it? She had been fighting for him for so long, and he still didn't see how much she cared about him. He was worth everything that they could possibly go through, and more. Why can't he see that, Tonks thought.

"Why can't you see that I'm protecting you? People would try to hurt you, physically! People hate me, even loathe me without even talking to me, just because of what I am. How would people react to… anything that might happen? They would go after you," Remus had started shouting, which was new, because Tonks was the one who yells, not Remus. "I can take care of myself," Tonks said, frowning at the thought of Remus thinking of her as a girly-girl who couldn't care for herself. "I know that, God knows that I know that. But it doesn't help if there are thousands of people against you to every 1 person helping you," Remus said, speaking from experience.

This wasn't working, Remus thought. She wasn't going to give up if he didn't deny his feelings for her. He couldn't let her put herself in danger because of him, and the only way he would stop her… would be to hurt her. That was about as painful as everything he had experienced in any fight.

"I don't care! Again, I love you! Give me a reason that I'd care about as to why we can't be together!"

Remus hesitated, but only for a moment. He just wanted to see her eyes swimming with hope once more.

"Because I don't love you," Remus lied. He lied right through his teeth, to protect her. Remus could feel his eyes filling with tears, blurring his vision, but before he left, he saw Tonks' shocked face, and tears falling from it.


End file.
